


the distance between the two of us

by alata_chan



Category: Free!
Genre: M/M, MakoRin Week, rating may go up as the story continues, starts from pre-high speed, will add more tags later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-12-14
Updated: 2014-12-16
Packaged: 2018-03-01 11:15:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,665
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2770982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alata_chan/pseuds/alata_chan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Every encounter brings our hearts closer and closer, until there's nothing between our hearts.</p><p>(Wherein every memorable event with each other, they notice that they're growing closer with each other, until they realize that they have fallen in love and there's no way they can escape it.)</p><p>(for MakoRin Week 2014)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. 3 meters

**Author's Note:**

> Day 1: Flowers|Warmth

“Makoto!” his mom called out, earning the attention of a certain brown haired child. The child ran towards her mother, hugging her in the legs, his green eyes gleaming with anticipation. His mother giggled as she ruffled the child’s hair, making the already messy hair even messier.

“Your father and I will just go pick up something, so can I ask you to stay put here? We won’t take that long. We already asked Takeshi-san to accompany you. Is that okay?” his mother asked.

In the mind of the young Makoto, being left by his parents made him lonely, but after hearing that old friendly fisherman named Takeshi— a family friend of theirs—will stay with him, his mood immediately brightened up.

The whole Tachibana family was in the nearby town of Iwatobi to visit their relative for their yearly sakura watching party and Makoto loved their yearly trip, not just because he gets to see those beautiful sakura petals falling, but also because he gets to see his fisherman friend.

Makoto enjoyed the company of the fisherman. ‘Takeshi-ojii-san’—as what Makoto calls him—always tells him stories about the sea and how it is wonderful to sail every day. He was also kind to Makoto, giving him small treats like candies and even some small trinkets like a keychain made out of shells and other things that makes the brown haired child feel special. “He really likes you Makoto,” said his father once when the old fisherman gave a small package of mocha.

It is why Makoto loves his’ Takeshi-ojii-san’ so much. And is why Makoto, despite being left by his parents ten minutes ago, is smiling ear to ear while sitting in a bench across the port while waiting for his friend fisherman to pick him up.

It was then when another child came to his view.

The child was running as something falls from the child’s arms. Makoto stared at those small pink-like things fall from the red haired child’s arm, eyes watching them drop to the floor. ‘Sakura… petals?’ he thought as he continues to watch the child.

The child—now stopped from running and just stood in front of the ocean— was around his age, with a bright red hair swaying with the sea breeze. He also noticed that there were a bunch of flowers, arranged like a crown around the head of the red haired child.

But what gained Makoto’s attention was how the child was smiling, how the child’s face lighten up as a stranger came closer.

“Papa! Surprise!” the child greeted, throwing the bunch of sakura petals in the air, the petals falling between the child and the man in front of him. “Because you can’t come with us today, I brought the sakura petals here so you can still enjoy it,” the red haired child grinned as the man laughed, lifting the child into the air.

“Rin, you don’t need to bring sakura petals with you,” the older man said. “I’m sure we can watch it as a family some other time, but thank you for the thought Rin.”

Makoto continues to watch the scene in front of him, how the red head smiled wholeheartedly as his father took hold of his hands, probably for them to go home.

Then suddenly the red haired child looked at him with a questioning gaze.

Makoto’s body stiffened in his seat, nervous about how the child looked at him.

Then the child smiled and waved at him.

Makoto felt his heart stop as heat started to rise up his cheeks. He meekly smiled back as he felt his face burning. The child smiled brighter at him.

Makoto was about to approach the child when he saw the man said something he does not hear, and then both of them started to walk away.

Makoto felt loner than before. He wished he could have talked with the other child, or at least asked his name. A sigh escaped his lips as he leaned back to the bench to gaze at the ocean when something caught his attention.

Three meters away from him was a small flower, the same flower the red head has around his head.

Makoto stood up from his seat to pick up the small purple flower. It felt fragile to his hands, as if it would crumble immediately in his touch.

“Makoto-chan! Sorry for the wait!”

Makoto turned around to see the source of the voice. “Takeshi-ojii-san!”

The old fisherman smiled, kneeling down to Makoto’s level. “Were you a good child while waiting?” he asked. Makoto nodded with a smile in his face. The fisherman laughed, ruffling Makoto’s hair. “Well, let’s go get some snack,” he said, offering his hand for Makoto to grab.

Makoto looked at his hands, still cradling the small purple flower before looking back at the fisherman.

“Ohh, what an interesting flower you got with you,” the old man leaned forward, eyes not leaving the flower in his hand. “Aster… they only bloom in fall. How did you have them?” the old man asked.

Makoto then told him everything—how his parents left him, to seeing the child with the same kind of flower around his head throw a bunch of sakura petals around the air and how the child smiled at him.

“I see,” the old man smiled at him. “Then you must treasure this flower.”

“…why?”

“Because in the language of flowers, Aster means ‘I won't forget you’.”

Since that day, Makoto hid the flower in a small box inside the drawer in his desk, never forgetting how the red haired child looks like.

And how there was a warm feeling in his chest every time he remembers how the red haired child smiled at him.


	2. one meter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A year later, Makoto saw the same red haired child—the same child whose smiles like the sun, bright and warm.  
> But the child wasn’t smiling anymore.  
> (Pre-High Speed!)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Day 2: Horror

Makoto never felt so afraid before.

Makoto was scared of ghosts, horror houses, of the huge big dog of their neighbour, of his twin siblings left alone in the park, of his mother and father when he does something bad and more.

But all of them never scared him like _this_ before.

He gripped his hold on Haru’s hand and Haru squeezing his hands in return.

A meter away from them was a procession. It was a procession for the dead.

For those who died in a ship accident, 3 kilometres away from the coast.

“…Haru-chan, why did they die?” Makoto whispered, eyes never leaving the line of people wearing white kimonos. “Coach told us that once we practice enough, we can swim 3 kilometres in the sea, right? Then…” Makoto gulped, trying to hold back his tears as he remembers the smiling face of the old fisherman. “…why did they die?”

Haru squeezed his hands harder.

Makoto looked at the ocean, its pristine colour and gentle waves still the same as before, but it wasn’t making him calm down like before.

Instead, it made him be afraid of it.

Makoto realized that deep inside the ocean was something is dark; something that can change the slow little waves reaching the beach to strong, power waves that can bring down a whole ship.

The ocean which provides the people a way of living ended the lives of those who mainly benefit from it. It was the same ocean which nourishes millions and millions of creatures who live underwater who took the lives of the fishermen sailing at its premises.

Makoto was lost in his thoughts that he never noticed that the end of the procession was near.

“Let’s get out of here,” Haru said, cutting Makoto’s train of thoughts. “They will scold us for staying too long.” Makoto nodded, knowing too well that they needed to return before their parents starts to worry.

Haru tugged Makoto, their hands still grasping each other. Makoto looked at his best friend with a hesitant look.

“Come on,” the black haired child said, taking a step away from where they stood. Makoto followed, each step feeling heavier than before. He glanced one last time to the procession.

It was then he noticed a familiar boy.

Makoto saw the same red haired child—the same child whose smiles like the sun, bright and warm, who threw sakura petals in the air as he cheerfully talked to an older man.

But the child wasn’t smiling anymore.

The red head’s eyes were red and puffy; as if he had cried a million times that he doesn’t have any more tears to shed. His shoulder sagging as he walks like he was dragging himself, taking every step slowly as if he doesn’t want to reach their destination. His face seems pale and blank as if void of any emotion.

And Makoto felt a pain in his chest, painful enough for him to forget how scared he was in the ocean.

He was more scared at how the happy red haired child became someone as lifeless like a doll.

He stood there, frozen in place as he watched the red haired boy walk, following the line of the crowd. There was a smaller girl beside him, crying silently as she walks, holding the hand of the boy.

Suddenly, the red haired boy looked at him.

Their eyes met, staring at each other for a while, the boy looking at Makoto, eyes starting to water as his lips begin to tremble. Makoto wanted to reach out, to hug the other boy to tell that it was okay to cry, to let out all the things that makes him sad, to make him smile again.

But Makoto felt Haru tug his arms once more, and Makoto knew that he needed to go.

He glanced one last time to the boy, mouthing “everything will be alright” before turning his back to follow Haru, hoping that those words will reach the red haired boy.

* * *

 

“Everything will be alright.”

Those were the words the saw the young brown haired stranger said and for the first time since his father died, Rin found a source of strength to carry on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my take for day 2 of MakoRin week. I was originally planning on writing about horror houses and choco banana but I remembered that something like that was already written by isuilde-senpai.  
> hope you enjoyed this fic.

**Author's Note:**

> My first contribution for MakoRin week. I'm sorry if this feels rushed and loaded with grammatical errors every now and then. So yeah, I named the old fisherman Takeshi-san.
> 
> And I imagine child!Rin being so sweet with his dad. ahhh... =3=
> 
> I should be studying right now for prelims tomorrow, not daydream about makorin... orz


End file.
